Warning: The following contains major (and majorly scandalous) spoilers from the Season 2A finale of ABC’s Scandal. Do not read until you have watched, or we’ll sic Charlie on ya.

This week on ABC’s Scandal… well, pretty much everything that could happen, did. Pope & Associates (“Bobblehead” included) scrambled to deal with their latest David Rosen problem while Olivia confronted the person responsible for the shooting. Alas, in the end nothing could keep President Grant from learning the truth about his tainted win. But what Fitz did with that information… yikes.

TVLINE | We always talk about “Scandal-pace” in terms of the rat-a-tat dialogue, but I also think of it in terms of how you pace the plot points and reveals. Also, you do what other show runners talk about but don’t always pull off, in that you answer a question in a way that only raises other questions. Yes, we open the hatch, but only to find a Scotsman down there. We see who was behind the rifle that shot Fitz, but is it really Huck? Do you consider those to be Scandal‘s other signatures?
That is part of what we talk about in the writers room when we talk about Scandal-pace, that part of it is the pace at which we lay out the story. With Episode 13, for instance, I was like, “This is five episodes you guys. This is five separate episodes.” We’re going to pack it all into 42 minutes and call it one episode, but in reality, this is five different episodes. Act 1 unto itself — Liv figuring out it was Verna [who had Fitz shot] — is an episode. But that’s not that interesting to us. When we got the 22-episode order [for Season 2], I was like, “We’re not going to slow the show down,” because that would change what the show is.

TVLINE | Back when Verna claimed to have seen Hollis with a burner phone, had you decided she was behind the shooting? Or even sooner?
We knew Verna was behind the shooting from the very beginning of the season. When we were trying to figure out why Quinn Perkins was Quinn Perkins and what was going on with that, we knew that Verna was behind it. That was sort of how we started the season out, and it was more about how we were going to unfold that.

TVLINE | Did you wrestle with actually showing, without a doubt, Fitz killing Verna? Because you could have left it presumed.
You know, I didn’t. In our original pitch, we said that Huck was going to kill Verna for Liv, to keep the whole thing a secret for her. But the more we talked about it and then as the story started to unfold, I was like, “Fitz has to kill Verna.” Everyone was like, “Are you crazy?” But the more we talked about it, the more it just made complete sense.

TVLINE | Even though you were making someone who’s already an adulterer now a killer?
Is there anybody on the show who’s not a “bad” person? I feel like you watch Fitz do that and in the strangest way you feel bizarrely, incredibly sorry for him. Because to me, the very act of stealing the election somehow stole whatever it was that made Fitz innocent and good and the perfect guy to be president. They took that from him and broke him in a lot of ways. So for me, it felt right.

TVLINE | So was that act about protecting his legacy, or protecting “the presents under the Christmas tree, the Easter Bunny” and all that?
I think there was a bit of vengeance in there. There was a bit of justice. Verna did kill [White House Press Secretary] Britta Kagan, she did do some real damage, and this was his only chance to take out his rage and his anger — and his upset at them stealing the election as well. But yeah, it was also him making a choice to keep the secret.

TVLINE | Ausiello and I, and I imagine others out there now, are wondering why Mellie basically wound up getting a free pass, while Olivia got the coldest of shoulders.
If you always knew that a monster was a monster, then you don’t expect the monster to be anything but monstrous. You don’t. Mellie, as far as he’s concerned, doesn’t truly love him. Mellie is all about ambition and about power and she’s always used him as a tool to get what she wants, which is the White House. So, Mellie was just Mellie being Mellie. But the idea that Olivia perhaps used him as a tool to get to the White House, that Olivia might have been about ambition and power, that Olivia did not actually believe in him and think that he could [get elected] on his own, is a devastating truth. Because when Olivia voted to fix that election, she basically confirmed for him all the terrible things that he ever feared about himself, that his father ever said about him. It’s a much bigger betrayal.

TVLINE | That was my first rationale, that it’s one thing to be scorned by Mellie, but to be lied to by the love of your life….
Yeah, I mean it’s not shocking to know that Cyrus did that. It’s not shocking to know that Mellie did that. It is shocking to discover that Liv did that.

TVLINE | Speaking of Cyrus: Where in the world did you get the idea for the strip scene between him and James, and what was the reaction from Jeff Perry and Dan Bucatinsky when they read it?
[Chuckles] I kept thinking, under what circumstances would Cyrus admit to [rigging the election]? And I kept trying to come up with ways in which they could have this conversation and Cyrus would feel safe. When I got to the point where he tells him to take off his clothes, which was kind of funny because Fitz was taking off his clothes earlier, it felt actually really real and true and right. As for the actors, when we handed this script out at the table reading, it was, no joke, still hot from the printer. And between that scene and the one where James is being chased by the gunman, I thought Dan Bucatinsky was going to die. He was like, “I’m naked and now I’m being murdered.” But at that moment, both Jeff Perry and David Bucatinsky were excited.

TVLINE | Jeff looked like he got freshly waxed for it.
Jeff Perry yelled he was going to go full-on Tony Soprano for that one. He goes, “I’m going to go full Gandolfini; I’m just going to just live naked.” And it just worked. They really went for it.

I am ‘fit to be tied’, anrgy, devastated that Shonda made Fritz into a killer. He was the prince and Olivia the princess. How dare you scandalize that relationship. I would have rather you murdered off anyone else but making Fritz the villian.

That’s exactly how I’m rationalizing it! Also, Fitz wasn’t acting with a sound mind. His entire world just came down: He didn’t “win” the election and he believes the love of his life didn’t believe in him.

His character has a brain injury, was shot several times including in the head, was confronted by the woman who hired the assassin, lived while another staffer died, then listened to the woman taunt him w/ a reference to his abusive father while also telling him he was nothing, including not President. Plus, the killer President is not an unusual concept (I’m older and have seen it in movies and TV). Shonda Rhimes, however, is the only TV or film drama creator who has shown me an emotionally tormented President.

not only is the president of the US a criminal he also raped his girl friend. during a baby cristianing while half his staff is still in the church. Where was his bodyguards and why the sex urge? n Is there a “GOOD” charcter in this show?

when someone confesses that they tried to kill you, and then tell you your entire life’s work was a lie, that you didn’t deserve a single ounce of anything you got because you stole it… then we’ll see how well you handle it

I think the point is that they can understand why Fitz did it. Not only does she tell him that she hired someone to assassinate him (and I’m still not totally sold on her logic as to why she did it,) she tells him that he isn’t the President because he didn’t win the election at all. That they bought it for him, thus confirming to him that his father was right and he didn’t deserve the office….that he would never win on his own. Then she calls him naive, pampered, and a clueless child. Then she tells him that the one person he truly loves, who he thought was the one person who believed in him completely, was in on it too. She tells him that her legacy, her job, her power was worth more than his life….and Britta Kagen’s. Then she ties it up by saying she told him all this not because she owed it to him, but because she owed it to his father.

So, as Chris Rock said “I’m not sayin’ he should’ve killed her…..but I understand.”

No it’s not ok but it is a compelling legal defense when you throw in the brain injury the killer is suffering from because he was shot multiple times by an assassin hired by the deceased (Verna). Something else is behind this level of scrutiny for an American TV drama political thriller based in Washington, D.C., titled Scandal. The scrutiny is beyond weird given the typical drama storylines and plots produced by American TV and film studios–especially those set in politics.

You gotta love how so many people feel compelled to slap that moral judgement on a fictional tv show. Personally, I thought Verna had it coming. She practically goaded him
into it. Fitz is human, she tried to have him killed, not once, but twice. Then she had the
gall to say she owed it to his father? Oh yeah, she was asking for it.
I also think, since no one knows he’s aware of the election rigging, he’s going to make each
of the participants “pay” in one way or another. I think he “reconciled” with Mellie for a reason. Not so much because he was so heartbroken over Olivia’s involvement, which I’m sure he is, but because he knows Mellie well enough to know that the only way to get even is to lull her into a false sense of security, then slam her for what she’s done. She’s done A LOT, too. It’s not just the election rigging. Fitz may be shaken, but he’s definitely got new resolve. I am really looking forward to see how he gets even with Hollis. Can’t wait to see what happens next.

This revelation/deathbed confession occurred not long after Fitz recovered from a coma, resulting from life-threatening (possibly mind altering) head injuries, caused by gunshot wounds which occurred during a hit that the deathbed confessor ordered on him, which also resulted in the death of the WH Press Secretary),all to save her “legacy.” To add insult to injury, the murderer informs him that the love of his life- the one person who he trusted with all of his heart- participated in a voting scheme because she doubted his ability to succeed, AND for good measure, the confessor adds that she had to tell him the truth (that he was not the President and why), because she owed it to his father- the man who took every opportunity he could to ruin Fitz’s self-esteem, and who stated before he died, that Fitz wouldn’t become President because he wasn’t a winner and would never be one … AND these life-altering revelations occurred in the span of several minutes from someone he considered to be a friend. In the words of Chris Rock: “I’m not saying I condone it, but I can understand.”

I am new to scandal and loving it. What I am a little confused about is what benefit Verna had in trying to kill Fritz? If she had succeeded, she would have lost her postion because VP wanted her replaced. How would it have benefited her to have him killed?

Verna was dying and she knew it. That guilt she was feeling was pretty powerful. Plus, she was old and dying. She would probably have died before the VP could by remove her from the bench, if she even could get her removed.

but fitz was never fully innocent and “prince” like. he is still an adulterous and liv is still an adulteress. that relationship was already scandalized. i wish they didn’t actually show him killing her, i wish they left it as a mystery like ausiello said where he went to the door and then it cut to the funeral

I really watch this show for Fitz and Olivia. Sure the cases are exciting and the I love the Gladiators in Suits, but if Fitz and Olivia don’t find their way back to each other, then I have to stop watching. Shonda did the same thing on Grey’s with Alex and Izzy. I can’t.

I am glad Shonda said that, because honestly that is almost word for word what went through my head towards the end of the episode. Honestly, now I kind of question why I watch the show. The only character with any redeeming qualities that isn’t just an large pile of crap is the AUSA, and they managed to get him fired and ruin his life. Liv got what she deserved and so did a few of the others, but man I am struggling to find a good reason to watch a show where only the most devious of the bunch ever get anywhere in life. And I’m not saying it’s a bad show, but it becomes harder for me to watch when I hate every single character. They are all just horrible people bent on power and manipulation, not something that interests me a lot.

Ok first of all Olivia didn’t agree to fixing the election! She was talked into it at the end! She wasn’t happy at all! Mellie on the other hand has done nothing but lie and scheme not because she loves Fitz because she loves being the First Lady! She is a bitch why would Fitz accept that! Olivia in my eyes is not bad she is a tough caring lovely person, so plz don’t let it be said all of them are bad! I haven’t watched it yet, but honestly if there is no chance for Fitz and Olivia I will loose interest!!

I think the point is that people are both good and bad. Fitz was already bad, he was having an affair. She did try to kill him, and she had cancer and was about to die. Liv has some redeeming qualities, she saved Hollis, she saved Quinn. Also, I’m just too addicted to the show not to watch it even if everyone is bad.

Ok, Fitz is not bad because he had an affair. He made a bad choice in cheating, loving Liv and acting on it but that does not make him a bad person. Now on the other hand Verna not only tried to have Fitz killed but she blamed Huck for it just to save her position. She gave Huck’s name to VP. and they tortured Huck and then she tried to have him shot again. That was premeditated. Fitz did not intend to fall in love with Liv. It just happened.

I agree with you. It wasn’t is intention to fall in love with her. His marriage was dead long b 4 Olivia came along. She did try and help mend their relationship, it was all an act to get to the White House. In the process they fell in love with each other. I don’t condone adultery, that’s why there is a solution called “Divorce”. Lets b real Mellie isn’t it this for love she has her own agenda and she needs Fitz right now to help her get there. Do you really believe if Fitz wasn’t an end to her means she would drop him like a hot potato?

For anyone to be sympathetic toward Mellie, for ANY reason, is mind boggling! So what if
she’s his wife and the mother of their children? She’s probably MORE immoral than any of
them. She lied about miscarrying a non-existent child, just to gain sympathy during the campaign, she induced labor just to hang onto Fitz when he was clearly going to leave her.
She has her own political ambitions and will justify anything to keep her position.
Olivia telling Cyrus to “leave Mellie be” has absolutely nothing to do with her being Fitz’s
wife. Olivia knows Mellie will eventually be responsible for her own undoing. Which she
proved by going behind Fitz’s back and speaking with the hostages’ families. Olivia knows
they don’t need to lift a finger to take care of Mellie. That is a marriage made in hell. They don’t even love each other.
Fitz knows who she is, he’s using her right now until he figures out how to make her pay for her part in the election rigging.
Mellie is no figure of sympathy here. She’s a harpy and definitely cannot be trusted, at all.

I think Edison wasn’t popular because he interfered with the Olivia and Fitz dynamic. Fitz may be married but he’s in love with Liv. Bad, yes. And while I don’t condone adultery, a friend told me once that falling in love isn’t always convenient. Fitz could choose to leave Mellie but this is fiction. It’s a tv show. There’s more drama and mileage the way Shonda has it going.

After they “re-consummated” their relationship, Edison was controlling, pushy and needy. He insisted on Olivia revealing her “last boyfriend” to him before she was ready. He was constantly staking claim over her and over-stepping his boundaries. He insisted on her giving up the “cookies” while she was in the midst of a national crisis (POTUS attempted assassination) and more. He was not a bad person at all, but his character needed to move the relationship slowly, unfortunately, he was impatient. His wanting to pick up right where they’d left off years earlier was his biggest mistake; they were no longer in that place.

I kinda of feel the same,,, but I never saw Olivia as a “princess” or Fitz as a “prince”, I never really rooted for them…for me he always was a married man with children who choose to remain so. And just because Olivia “was talked to fix the election”, she still choose to do it, so she could never be an innocent…. looking back at an earlier episode, she´s not a whore, but she sure is a criminal and a liar! And Fitz, well as much as I understand how bad he hearing Verna, that sure doesn´t give the right to murder her… and now he knows he didn´t win the election, but I don´t think he will step back, will he?
I think I still watch the show to root against all that people and wish they get what they want.
But this is just a TV show, and it´s well done… if it gets so much people talking about it, that´s because somehow it touches them and ultimately I believe that´s what a TV show looks for…

Olivia didn’t get what she deserved. She and the others “deserved” a punishment of something from life in federal prison to a death sentence for conspiracy to commit treason. Stealing an election is treason. It’s a coup. These aren’t slightly bad people; these are extremely bad people. I’m annoyed by the utter lack of accountability that any of them has been subjected to.

The show also strained my suspension of disbelief by having Cy’s husband’s lies in the grand jury treated as unimpeachable truth. Surely Rosen had ample evidence to support what he’d been told. It’s simply not believable that he wouldn’t. Any AUSA would have been able to absolutely shred a witness who lied like that.

The other millions of viewers will not care if you don’t watch. This show is great! This is a TV show and it is called Scandal. The viewers are extremely tired of the bubble gum romantic crap that airs on TV. This is something new and if you want to stop watching go ahead.

You know guys…this can all be undone in one instant. The rewrite could show Fitz thinking of killing her but then he snaps back to his senses. At that point she could actually stop breathing and that would be when he runs out the door to save her by calling for help. Once he realizes he was willing to kill her, then he can forgive Liv.

In addition, Cyrus in conversation could simply without trying, defend Olivia as the only one that did not really want to cheat the vote, that she kept insisting Fitz could win on his own. However, in the end doubted herself because of having fallen in love with Fitz. She felt she was not sharp and was at fault for the campaign shortcomings.

That would fix it all and Fitz could remain a good person who’s only fault was falling in love with Liv. We could then top it off with the baby belonging to a secret service person like the shorter one that let her know that Liv was at the hunting grounds that day and why Fitz was really upset. Remember the “blink your eyes if I am right” scene? LOL! He always seem to feel sorry for her anyway. :-)

Yup … kinda like when the writers of Dallas undid everything that had transpired during an entire season, including the death of Bobby Ewing, by having his wife wake up to find him taking a shower in the season close.

so do you think that Fitz will fire Cyrus. He sure “fired” Olivia, and “fired” Verna. He can’t really do anything about Hollis. Will Cyrus sort of reverse blackmail him? And would Fitz – who knows from previous experience what Cyrus’s “hallelujah heroin” is- power brokering, machiavellian schemes, etc., even believe him or listen at all to any defense of Olivia. And most of all- would Olivia even want anyone to need to defend her to Fitz. If I were she I would want him to go straight the Foxtrot to hell for not knowing I was attempting to give him his expressed heart’s desire. Which of course, in itself was her mistake, because that is not why she was brought to the campaign. She was supposed to find a way to successfully sell him to the voters.

Wow!!! I feel the same way…I knew his father didn’t think he had the Balls to win the election on his own. When Verm broke it down to Fitz felt naked, cheated, sooo insecure and the butt of everyone’s Joke. He just doesn’t trust no one now, not even Liv. I don’t see how he trust Mellie Now He has his own game to play…What could possible be next.

Also guys… Verna revealed EVERYTHING to him and then HAD THE BALLS to tell Fitz that she was going to leave ALL OF THEIR LIVES in shambles while she disappeared into oblivion. Fitz actually saved Olivia, Cyrus AND Mellie by doing what he did. Disclaimer: I DO NOT CONDONE MURDER. That being said, he had NO TIME LEFT… David Rosen was in the hallway moments away from learning of the entire “scandal”. For Fitz, after having just learned that this woman tried to murder him, it would have seemed extremely EVIL of her to make a deathbed confession that would ruin the life that she recently tried to murder and the lives of those he loved. She would have thrown the country into a tailspin and sent Olivia, Cyrus,etc… to jail for treason. He has ethics on his side, to be honest. This was brilliant writing by Shonda, a true example of an ETHICAL DILEMMA in psychology. A real Sophie’s Choice.

@theOtherMonique: Excellent synopsis. Verna was just bitter that she had to die, and wanted to take everyone else down with her. She apparently liked to play mind games, because you notice she told Olivia that confessing the truth wouldn’t help anyone, yet, right after Olivia walked out, she picks up the phone and calls David Rosen & Fitz. She tells Fitz they sold their souls for him, when truthfully, the only one out of the group who didn’t participate for her own benefit was Olivia. Then, the last thing she said to Fitz was, in essence, that she owed it to his mentally and emotionally abusive father, who rarely if ever, showed faith in him, to tell him that he was not the President because the election had been rigged for him. She was a Bwitch, plain & simple. : P

Olivia, Cyrus and Co. SHOULD be in jail for treason! Yes, yes, yes, the brilliance of Shonda’s writing is that (most of)) the audience is rooting for them to get away with it, but that doesn’t mean they were somehow NOT wrong. They were wrong! They broke the law! They know they broke the law! That’s why Olivia was drinking at 9:00 a.m. in the face of James possibly revealing the whole thing. She knows that she and the rest of the cabal did wrong, and it’s a disservice to the character(s) to act like they SHOULDN’T be in trouble for it when they’re all well aware of their culpability and, for Olivia, at least, it’s a cross she knows she has to bear. Fitz murdering Verna wasn’t altruistic. It’s fine (to me) if people understand it and even condone it in some kind of Old Testament eye-for-an-eye fashion. But please don’t argue to me that it was selfless and all about protecting anyone but himself. Fitz ARTICULATED why he was doing it as he did it – to protect his legacy. I can believe OLIVIA didn’t want the truth to come out because it would hurt Fitz (and Fitz IS an innocent when it comes to the actual election-rigging; he didn’t ask any of them to do that for him); she said as much to Cyrus. But Fitz was only thinking of Fitz. HE SAID AS MUCH. Just because the rest of them not getting into trouble is a by-product of Fitz’ decision to kill Verna doesn’t mean that’s WHY he did it. He did it to protect himself/his presidency.

I believe the truth is going to come out why Olivia voted “yes” to election rigging. Remember when Fitz was cutting wood and telling Olivia he wanted to be President more than anything, but his father kept putting him down? This is when Olivia made her decision to vote “yes”. She did it for LOVE – not that this is a good reason, but this is why the writers and creator is doing a great job. This show is never boring and I love this about the show.

I don’t like the fact that Fitz is a killer. But what I dislike even more is that Fitz and Liv seem to be over with. I love the show and all the characters, but Fitz and Liv’s love affair and the chemistry they have between them is the #1 reason I watch the show. I hope they find their was back to each other. And I don’t blame Fitz for killing someone that tried to have him killed.

Yes I agree with Alichat, It was the suppressed anger with his father that fueled that murder. And I have to say that he only beat the reaper by a few mins. Verna was reaching out from death to keep a scandal going that she benefited from but she also helped put into action. So it was a bit of a Greek Tragedy keeping her actions in balance with her fate but if she had not given Fritz a heads up about her intentions but also led him to this idea of killing her. As if she was saying if you have the grit you can stop me. I think that Fritz was stunned for a moment himself. It was an impulse not a well thought out political move. Also this murder shows that Fritz is capable of the lapse of judgement as anyone else. BTW I just watched the complete 2 seasons on netflix and then hulu in 2 days! What a wild ride.

Unacceptable Ms. Rhimes. Who cares what it looks like for Fritz/Mellie. We all know what it looks like. That’s the only example we’ve seen – white/white or black stay back. That love should be with Fritz/Olivia, let’s see what that looks like. Especially today in the world so diverse. Where was your imagination. You sold out to the man!

More like he’s been used by everyone. Please stop with the he uses people. He’s no saint but let’s not assign false faults. And this whole adulterer thing. Cry me a river. I’m not going to advocate for a marriage like the one Mellie and Fitz has. That institution is not so sacred that people should suffer through being unhappy and being tied to someone who sees you as a means to an end. They broke that man. They all forced his hand. And now he has to live with the fact that he committed murder. What other option did he have? It’s terrible and he knows it. Poor Fitz.

Okay, I was with you that Fitz isn’t necessarily a user, but you lost me with the argument that he had NO OTHER OPTION but to commit murder. Of course he did. He could’ve let the truth come out and let the chips fall where they may. But just like Verna AND Mellie (and Cyrus and, yes, even Olivia), his desire for his office/the power it gives him made him CHOOSE to do what was necessary to hold onto it – silencing Verna. Just because both a person’s choices are unpleasant doesn’t mean the person has no choice at all. Fitz chose to put himself in a position where he now has to live with the fact that he committed murder by, you know, committing murder. As for Fitz being tied to Mellie, wrong again: he could’ve chosen Olivia last season. Just because Olivia and Mellie made that deal with one another in the S1 finale didn’t mean Fitz HAD to abide by it. He’s a grown man! The idea that he can’t extricate himself from his marriage to Mellie – that he hasn’t MADE A CHOICE about continuing to be with her because it suits his political ends – isn’t something I can get behind. Fitz, like all of the other characters, has made certain choices that result in him being in some of the situations he’s in. He could’ve left Mellie when he realized he wasn’t in love with her/was in love with Olivia. He CHOSE not to because it wasn’t the politically expedient thing to do. I don’t think people are required to stay in loveless, unhappy relationships either, but Fitz chose to do so for reasons related to his ambitions. And people get to judge him for it if he can’t even honor the choice by not sleeping with people who aren’t the wife he chose to stay with.

Repost for @Jessica P. – Verna revealed EVERYTHING to him and then HAD THE BALLS to tell Fitz that she was going to leave ALL OF THEIR LIVES in shambles while she disappeared into oblivion. Fitz actually saved Olivia, Cyrus AND Mellie by doing what he did. Disclaimer: I DO NOT CONDONE MURDER. That being said, he had NO TIME LEFT… David Rosen was in the hallway moments away from learning of the entire “scandal”. For Fitz, after having just learned that this woman tried to murder him, it would have seemed extremely EVIL of her to make a deathbed confession that would ruin the life that she recently tried to murder and the lives of those he loved. She would have thrown the country into a tailspin and sent Olivia, Cyrus,etc… to jail for treason. He has ethics on his side, to be honest. This was brilliant writing by Shonda, a true example of an ETHICAL DILEMMA in psychology. A real Sophie’s Choice. @Jessica – I don’t think that his decision was as self-serving as you believe it to have been.

I think the point that SCANDAL tries to make, is that rules don’t seem to apply to those in power (not whether it is right or wrong, just what “is”). These expectations that have been placed on the heads of the powerless (We the People…), certain rules and laws, are there as invisible restraints meant to prevent chaos, but that SOME who have power might feel that in order to keep the larger society from a chaotic state, rules should not apply to the rule(law)makers.

I just think the show is one part guilty-pleasure, one part insightful storytelling, and one part expose. Brilliant.

Oh please … it’s DRAMA. Of course Fitz and Olivia are going to have a tumultuous relationship due to the nature of the show and the dynamics of their relationship. Personally, I hope they have her with hot men from varied racial and ethnic backgrounds. Oh, and perhaps one day she and Harrison will explore the potential romantic side of their relationship … that would be lovely.
: )

I cannot believe that anyone would accuse Shonda Rhimes of being racist. Have you even watched her shows? She’s had many interracial couples. Cristina and Burke, Cristina and Owen, Addison and Sam, Addison and Jake. I imagine there were more. She may be guilty of many things, but racism isn’t one of then.

I disagree. Shonda is great about diversity. She is showing diversity. Fitz still loves her and the show is getting interesting. Stop playing this race crap with Shonda because she is the least one in Hollywood that does this.

Grey’s is good, Private Practice may have had heart, but Scandal is Shonda’s masterpiece. What other show runner would risk their leading male protagonist becoming a villain by having him kill someone to protect his job. That had me crying and the only time I cried during a show was when Robin Scorpio died. It took me 5 yrs to attach to her. Genius stuff bravo Scandal writers.

@Deborah – You’re being overbearing (with your multiple posts) and negative about ONE episode. If you read the article ABOVE in its entirety, you would, hopefully, have understood that they will still be attracted to each other, but the dynamic will be different. THERE IS NOTHING HEROIC ABOUT ENDING A SHOW EARLY. That is what would happen if we had the happy ending.. for no earthly reason…in the middle of the season. Mellie ALWAYS lies… F-I-T-Z (not Fritz) knows this, but it was the one person he trusted, Olivia, that let him down. He thought Olivia believed in him (during the election), something Fitz’s father (and in his mind, Mellie) did not. He trusted and depended on her emotionally and lost his faith in her when he found out the truth. He needed to cling onto something/one he could control and knew inside and out… Mellie.

You are right, Liv did agree to do it, however when she said we won’t do it ( rig the election) she went to tell Fitz but before she could he told her his father had just died. I think Liv got caught up emotionally and after Cyrus kept trying to convince her, she finally agreed to it. Millie, however
is the biggest liar coming, she has convinced Fitz who isn’t , thinking straight that Cyrus was the culprit when it was Hollis who came up with the idea. What has Mellie got going with Hollis?

Love reading your replies Texas2. I usually agree with most of them. Particularly when you tell people who threaten to quit watching to go right ahead, they won’t be missed. Also, when you call people on the race thing, so agree!!! This is the real world.
Personally, I thought it was absolute genius to have Fitz kill Verna. If he hadn’t, I would have thought he should have. Fitz and Olivia (I refuse to combine their names-it’s juvenile) will
work their way back to one another.
Mellie will continue to blow herself up, it’s in her nature. She can never see passed what she wants. Out of all of them, Mellie is still the wildcard. She has her own ambitions and cannot be trusted. When she feels cornered, she blurts out anything, lie or otherwise. It wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for her to threaten to expose them all with what she knows about Defiance if she feels her position is threatened. Liv wanted to come clean because she feels tremendous guilt and remorse, Mellie would do it just to be spiteful.
My goodness! I do so love this show. Have never been a fan of Grey’s or Private Practice, but this one? Oh my Miss Shonda!!!

I don;t think I have been more invested in a show in my life. The twists are so well done and believable! I can never predict this show and I love it for that. It makes me angry and happy and everything else. Great job on the episode!! Left me just crazy mad!

LOL …. I love this comment. The woman who played Verna is really good – very believable – just for that purpose- I was hoping for her to stay for awhile. otherwise, I don’t mind Fitz killed her. She sent 3 bullets through his head and killed another woman. no sympathy. Fitz is a good guy regardless- he has proven that so many times. And the love between Fitz and Olivia is and will never die. THAT IS THE HEART OF THE SHOW even if I like all characters including Hollies :-o

Well, really, Fitz started out as a bad guy. He ordered Liv to totally ruin Amanda Tanner’s life just because he didn’t want to continue his affair with her. He remained a very big suspect in her murder throughout season 1’s entirety. The loosened him up when his relationship with Olivia became super popular, but he was always capable of terrible things. I’m just glad they’re going back to showing that side of him.

Thats not right. She protected that girl. It was the VP’s chief of staff that ruined that girls life, it was his baby, not the President. Don’t you guys watch closer than that. I didn’t like Tony in Ghost or the Pelican Brief, but I loved him in Scandal in love with Olivia. Shame Shondr!

Mm no buddy, in the pilot episode Olivia told her that if he didn’t move out of DC and cut all ties with Fitz, her life would be hell. Olivia tore into her so bad, Amanda attempted suicide. Olivia did this on request from Fitz, who was lying to her and manipulating her.

Very good points you make here and I’m glad I read them because I left the show this evening upset about a couple of things concerning Fitz. The murder and the fact that he uses the same line of “we’re in this together” with Mellie (and earlier) Liv.

Fitz did not have an affair. Do you guys watch the show. Trust me, you don’t understand this show unless you watch it twice. It was not an affair, it was a one time thing. Plus Amanda was the bad person who worked with the VP’s COS to black mail Fitz. Why on earth Fitz is being blamed for this. I don’t understand people!!!!

Not to mention what he did to Sally to get her to fall in line last season – threatening to out the information about her daughter’s abortion to the world. Sally’s fair game; she signed up for the cut-throat world of Washington politics, but her teenaged daughter didn’t! Fitz was willing to ruin that kid’s life – or at least put it under a very harsh and unwanted spotlight – just to bring her mother to heel. Like you, Rrrrrr, I’m glad that Shonda decided to remind people of THAT Fitz and that he still exists.

I think Fitz was assuming the threat of telling the world that pro life Sally arranged for h
daughter’s abortion would be enough to make her fall in line; and that he would not have to humiliate the daughter. NO sympathy for Sally.

I’m well aware that he was counting on Sally to blink. That’s not my point. My point is that an actual good person, an actual decent person? Wouldn’t think of using someone’s child as a blackmail chip. The very fact that Fitz could be OK with doing something like that means that he’s not the innocent idealist a lot of people in these comments seem to be painting him as. He’s always had the capacity for ruthlessness in him; just because they backseated it once his relationship with Olivia became popular doesn’t mean it disappeared. I’m glad Shonda reminded the audience that he’s more than capable of doing questionable things without being goaded or manipulated into it by others.

well shonda, i’m disappointed! big time, how fitz gonna act..he cant forgive lib but he forgives his wife? she”s done nothing but push him for her own reward, thats not love! come on shonda, you cant build a whole show up with cliff hangers based on pursuing love and then cut it off like that! you have the whole team of libs sacrificing their very lives to save hers and fitz willing to give up everything for her and then have him hipocritically disown her, smashing her feelings like that,like he is just so betrayed! he has nerves to judge, melly thats crap! heck you even have huck preaching to his team mate about the warrior etc this one kinda lost its direction from the characters personalities and their drive for serving purpose, keeping the mission at hand.

I disagree. As the article said: you know where Mellie’s coming from, Cyrus even. Fitz knows who they are and he’s not surprised by what they’ve done. But Olivia. He didn’t expect the lying and cover-up and election rigging from Olivia. His response to Mellie is justified. I want to see how he’ll react to Cyrus

My goodness, don’t you people read the interview. Everything in the interview she said is what I thought when I was watching the show. The reason why Fitz chose Mellie over Liv makes perfect sense. Real fans of this show can watch it and figure it out. Shondra is an awesome writer. This is her masterpiece. She writes the character driven plots not plot points. So you get to know the characters and why they do what they do. When Cyrus told Liv that he had other options, I knew he would try to have his husband killed. It’s because you know the characters so well.

Awesome! Awesome! Awesome! I know some fans are going to be upset bc tv usually romanticizes the hero/heroine but Scandal goes beyond bc guess what there are times when the hero/heroine has enough skeletons in their own damn closet. That is why I love Clint Eastwood westerns above all and thats why I love this drama! Sometimes I fear that they just can’t keep it up but I guess after this episode (sense this was suppose to be the finale) things are going to slow down a bit but no matter how Fitz feels right now the angst between him and Liv will continue. Man that first scene gave me goose pimples, these two actors in a room have such great chemistry together! Again I bow to Ms. Shonda Rhimes and it only took a decade of my life for me to enjoy watching a drama so much!

I don’t understand why Verna would kill Fitz. Her rationale, to fix America’s soul, doesn’t make sense to me. How would killing Fitz do that? All it would do is give the presidency to Sally Langston, which isn’t what the American people wanted either. Did I misunderstand something? Or does this just not make sense?

Verna had to kill Fitz so that her legacy would not be tarnished. If Fitz lived and the truth came out, Verna would lose her seat (and place in history). “Off” Fitz and the entire administration goes down, except for Verna who had already been named Supreme Court Justice.

Verna thought that if Fitz was assassinated, the country would grieve and move on, and her crimes would stay hidden. Thus, her legacy would stay in tact. She was all about protecting herself, just like everybody else on this show.

Fitz chooses Mellie because of the old adage, “keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” He sees Mellie for what she is: somebody he thought capable of murder. Well, as it turns out HE is capable of it. He knows what it’s going to take now to stay in office and to get re-elected. As somebody else pointed out, he knows what Cyrus is capable of, he knows what Mellie is capable of (she endangered her baby’s life to keep him in the marriage — just the tip of the ol’ iceberg), but he is devastated that Olivia didn’t believe in him enough to let things take their natural course.

Shonda, don’t scr#w this up! I experienced more OMG (and a few oh sh*t!) moments last night than I’ve seen in a one-hour show. This show is gold.

Great interview. Shonda is very talented. I love that she’s willing to take the plots to unexpected levels. First an adulterer, now a murderer. And yet, the story is told so well, we still love him. Shonda’s guts keeps the show fresh and entertaining.

@KCC – In THE TRAIL, we were told that Mellie and Fitz had not been talking for years, remember “dead marriage”. If anything, Olivia brought them closer together during the campaign. Without her relationship intervention, Fitz would not have come even close to winning the primaries.

Fitz and Mellie were not happy together, but were in the equivalent of a business relationship (in Fitz’s mind) where Mellie just thought she was doing what a wife should do to support her husband’s interests (that should, in essence, benefit his family’s interests) without the emotional support which Fitz craved. Neglect. …. but, I mean, I hope you’re not disappointed if they do not appear “happily married” upon their return. It alsmot wouldn’t make sense for them to be “happily married” at this pointm but yeah… I did enjoy watching them, happy, together in HUNTING SEASON when Mellie was folding the baby clothes.

^^^^
This. They were just business partners. The only reason they have that baby is because Mellie lied during the campaign and said she was pregnant so they had to create a baby. There is no love there at all.

I disagree. I think that they love each other in their own way… well at least they understand each other very well, which could be the basis for love. Remember when she gave him his meds and was lotioning his hand (right before he asked for the divorce)? They were so in time with each other, it was nice to watch.

All I’m saying is that it would be nice to see them on the same side and working together, for a change, as well as to see them as a happy couple.

Um. She was lotioning HER hands and telling him how awful it was for the senator’s wife, who couldn’t walk, to have to change his diapers. And then saying how great his approval numbers were. Very comforting. They are not and will never be a happy couple. Strained allies maybe. But they are never going to be a happy couple in love.

Fitz and Olivia were not the perfect couple. Love is not supposed to hurt and be painful and disastrous. She was his mistress. He chose the Presidency over her. She chose the Presidency over him. They were not the perfect couple.

Again false. He tried to give up his Presidency and she was talked out of it by Stephen who told her “she couldn’t have him” and by Cyrus “some men aren’t meant to be happy. some men are meant to be great.” Their love is painful because they can’t be together. It hurts because they are so much going against them and it’s disastrous because they have made mistakes. So, yes they are, in this world, the couple who should be together. Not perfect but together.

Why, why, WHY do people keep acting like Fitz and Olivia haven’t made CHOICES that have kept them from being together. That they haven’t both decided that OTHER THINGS are more important than their love? If a person really wants to do something and believes it’s in their best interests, no one can “talk” them out of it. Olivia was swayed by Cyrus because on some level, she actually believes that Fitz being President is more important than Fitz being her full-time partner. Fitz chose to remain with Mellie because on some level, he actually wants the power and prestige of the presidency (which just last week it was hammered home to him how much his stock would plummet if he tried to divorce her) more than he wants a happy, settled life with Olivia. Yeah, those choices cause them both pain, but they’re still choices. No one’s MAKING Fitz or Olivia do things they somehow don’t think need to be done.

I agree with you. I want him and Mellie to work things out and save their marriage. She always did what needed to be done to protect him. I want Olivia to move on to someone else. Love doesn’t have to be this hard.

@Addie, Mellie did what she had to do to get them to the White House, which resulted in her helping Fitz, albeit for selfish reasons. On the trail when he was losing votes with women, she lied about the miscarriage. When the tape of the affair came out, she lied and said that it was her. Whether you agree with her motives or not, her actions helped Fitz get (and keep) the Presidency

I love Scandal, but to quote Carrie I can’t help but wonder how much more amazing it would be if they had better actors. No disrespect to the cast, they are good, some of them are great, but there are some really great stories that I just don’t buy or care about because the acting isn’t pulling me in. There is so much a good story can do. Just an example, Mellie could be such a conniving unlikeable bitch, but the acting is great and I love her character, in contrast with characters like Quinn and Huck, who both have pretty cool backstories, but I just don’t care about them.

Vicky so agree with you. Mellie is only out for Mellie. Olivia was in love with him. My heart ached for her in the church after the funeral, my heart broke when he walked away form her. I cried as Olivia crawled in Fritz’ hospital bed. Shondra, bring them back, bring them back together.

Holy s*** did he really did that, I can’t believe he actually did that, I feel so bad for liv, he might think that she did it for her own but she is the only one in that group that did it for him and not for herself, great episode again

I preface my post by saying that this show is definitely getting better episode by episode. I enjoy immensely. I do have a few observations. I wouldn’t call them gripes.

1. I think its asking alot of your audience to accept an already philandering lead as a murderer. Not that I didn’t like the twist and don’t understand the concept of being morally in the middle. I guess I understand her rationale. I just hope there is some consequences to this, not necessarily meaning jail time.

2. I really think they should have had James leave Cyrus. It just irked me how he decided to change his mind in testifying with no explanation. So if you weren’t going to have him do the right thing, then at least have him punish Cyrus some how.

3. I can’t be the only one tired of the waffling Abby does when it come to Olivia. One minute she’s growing a backbone and demanding Liv show them some kind of respect. Then Harrison gives the “gladiator speech” and then its business as usual. This leads me in wondering if we are genuinely supposed to like Liv. I get she help these people at really tough times in their lives. But a relationship is a two way street and hers with her staff comes off as controlling and one sided.
Which leads me to my final observation. I find the only characters I truly like would have to be Mellie and David. And its for the reasons she explain as to why Fitz seems to have given her a free pass. There are no pretenses with these two.

Are you blind Tony. Olivia is the best part on the show. Cyrus should have called the hit on James, Verna should have just died. Mellie should have lost the baby. David and Abby should get back together. I love Puck = leave him like he is. Free pass my ass, Fritz’ didn’t want to bring Olivia down when it’s discovered that he killed Verna. At least that’s the only way I’ll continue to watch this show.

His name is FITZ lady!! and its Huck not Puck! no offense but as the critic you are you could at least critique her in the proper way. I am unsure if you are speaking of the same Scandal that everyone else is watching.

Point taken. Though I think with Walt, I enjoy him and all his nastiness because there have been and will be consequences to the decisions he’s made. I do realize this is only the first half of the second season. So I might have jumped the gun a bit. But I think the point I was trying to make is that I hope this isn’t swept under the rug and that some real consequences outside of his relationship with Liv are explored. You just don’t kill someone and not have that seep into your life in a big way.

uhhh this is a show, remember? all of the logistics , go out of the window!! everyone’s scenarios, etc don’t matter, Shonda is the writer and she can write as she pleases….the gladiator speech is what made red head go to the apartment and get the chip..Liv demands respect just because of who she is and what she can do..they all have a story to tell and if they don’t like LIV, they can leave..i think HUCK summed it up lovely with Quinn! (if I kill Hollis, you have to leave here and never come back! BOOM!).Shonda ..KUDOS!!

I realize its a show and with any show, some instances of logic need to be suspended. But on the same token, when you are competing with cable for the attention of the audience, you certainly want to have fully fleshed out characters. Again, I am enjoying the show. But at some point, that shtick is going to get old.

WOW!!! Didn’t see that coming; I have to admit I was sitting on my sofa thinking he’s going to kill her…then I though, no, they won’t let his character become a killer. Disappointed with the outcome but thrilled with Shonda Rhimes ballisness. Scandal Rules!

This quote is what makes Shondra such a great writer. I love this quote. Yeah love is not suppose to hurt but I so agree with it and Liv. I see Liv is in pain but still it seems that kind of love it what makes it extraordinary. To go through battles for love makes it great.

Masterpiece, i love every minute of it. I’m loving Scandal, more and more.
Gotta love Shonda for making us fall in love for this bunch of little murderous liars. Huck, Cyrus, Verna, and now Fitz , love all those twists.

Actually I can spell (a few mis hit keys sitting in the car waiting for transit) and am obviously more educated and smarter that you, because Fitz is definitely a scum sucking morally bankrupt bottom feeding murdering slimy repub moron (the wife bought and paid for him), and anyone who works for him is also….check the eps where they reveal how they stole the election, its very clear. The Glads may not be repubs, but they are criminal scum, just like the rest of the characters on the show except for David. I love Josh Malina but he’s not enough to keep me watching. To make the President a murderer, and to not have any redeemable characters, this show is now a disgrace. Anyway, thankfully I won’t have to look at the no talent slept her way into every role she’s ever had or gotten it because of her looks Kerry Washington anymore. On her other shows Shonda’s biggest gift was writing about the gray ares of people and situations. here its just all black, and she should be ashamed. If you want to see a show on the same subject with characters of depth, not perfect, but human, watch the West Wing

Bye!!! I think you would be more suited for the GMC channel. Those reruns of the Waltons would be better for you since you are so upset that a show named SCANDAL has a president “killing” a dying woman. You also must think Washington politics are so cut and dry. Politic and politicians are not innocent. There is no telling how many buried bodies are in Washington D.C.

All i have to say is i needed a cigarette after watching that show and i don’t smoke!! Shonda put her entire FOOT in that episode, you hear me??!! Brillant, Brilliant, BRILLANT!! and why wouldn’t Fitz kill Verna…??? gotta keep the viewers intrigued!! My HAT goes off to you SHONDA RHIMES!! you KILT it!!!!!!!!!

shoot I missed something
when did they figure out that verna tried to have fitz killed? and they are talking about liv wanting the white house and what cyrus did…this hasn’t been shown yet , has it? I am still trying to figure out what jake is doing

What’s sad for me is that when I first saw the Verna death scene unfolding I thought, “Hooray, he’s going to kill her to protect Olivia.” Then when he mentioned his life’s work I was devastated. It was for his personal benefit!

Maybe I had mistakenly thought that he was the paragon of service for the people, rather than something for himself.

Well really his personal benefit is everyone’s personal benefit. His legacy isn’t just about him. It’s about his children and the life they will lead. It’s about the woman he’s married to and America having a first lady that goes to jail. It’s about being the man and administration that “takes down the Republic” which this most certainly would have done. And yes, even if he didn’t say it, it was about protecting Olivia, Cyrus and Mellie from going to jail. He’s proven that he’s willing to lose the Presidency (at the end of season 1 and earlier in the episode) but I think he realized he couldn’t let Verna burn the whole house down with everyone in it. Also, I’m as big as an Olitz supporter as the next guy, but he has EVERY right to be mad at Olivia. WE know why she did it. He doesn’t. She hasn’t even admitted it to him. How can he forgive something that she hasn’t even owned up to or explained? That conversation is going to be amazing.

Loved/Hated the episode. It was rough. But more to the point of why I’m commenting.. This article definitely deserves the “spoiler alert” warning at the top of the page, but the web address ends with “fitz-kills-verna” .. certainly giving it away!

This is a soapy television show you know. It’s a messy love and it’s entertaining. Why so many holier than thou people watch Scandal and act so upset by what they see? You know what the show is about so why tune in?

Ok I was gonna just stay on the Facebook Scandal fan page or Tumblr but you guys was going in so I had to put my two cents in. First, the Huck and Charlie dynamic in the elevator culminated Hollis getting in that life boat to sell the rest of the remaining Iluminati up the river. Cyrus’ last card was to kill James so power mean more than love to Cyrus James how could you not already know this. Verna well we knew it was either her or Governor Reston because who else got 5 million on deck. But Fitz I feel so sorry for you because you were naive and pampered and you never saw none of that coming. I realize now that you played the Olitz music at the funeral because their relationship died when he snuffed out Verna. For Olivia she will move on but Fitz is spoiled and he wants to have his way so he is going to be the dark declare war on Olivia Fitz we saw in season 1 but this time it is with lots of brown liquor and no I do not believe all that crap he told Mellie in the Oval he knows rigging the election is Mellie’s trump card so he is going to play nice until he gets over the devastating truth that the person he let get the closest and loved the most broke his heart

Fitz is just hurt and angry not because of the others but Olivia. He will get over it. If he stays dark too long … the fans that are so vested in the love affair will leave in droves. No one wants their president to be evils. I have made comments on how this could play out. Check it out!

Ok first let me say that Fitz was justified in killing Verna. As we used to say when we were kids she started it. As for him being upset by the election fixing…well your president now get over it. However after asking Olivia to wait for him not to get married and move on with her life to turn on her like that because of an election…too much. If anything her participation should have proved her level of devotion .
To me I wonder if he even knows what love is. What she was willing to sacrifice for him.

I soooooo agree with this post . Yes I totally understand killing Verna. That dying hag was ready to destroy the whole world. She was trying to take down too many people with her little deathbed confession, she needed to go.

But Fitz dumping Liv… what? She resigned her position from the White House. She wanted nothing from him but his love. She sacrificed her morals and values for him She struggled with that
decision. And he dumps her. ITA… Fitz is a 50 year old idiot. He doesn’t know what love is nor does he deserve Liv. I really hope Liv just moves on. She deserves better, much better than Fitz. Screw you Fitz!

This is a TV show and not real life so don’t become so invested you lose sight of reality. It’s the best I watched. I don’t watch TV and came upon this by chance and became addicted. Yet I understand its not real. Shonda Rhimes is just great at telling stories.

As I said earlier:
You know guys…this can all be undone in one instant. The rewrite could show Fitz thinking of killing her but then he snaps back to his senses. At that point she could actually stop breathing and that would be when he runs out the door to save her by calling for help. Once he realizes he was willing to kill her, then he can forgive Liv.

In addition, Cyrus in conversation could simply without trying, defend Olivia as the only one that did not really want to cheat the vote, that she kept insisting Fitz could win on his own. However, in the end doubted herself because of having fallen in love with Fitz. She felt she was not sharp and was at fault for the campaign shortcomings.

That would fix it all and Fitz could remain a good person who’s only fault was falling in love with Liv. We could then top it off with the baby belonging to a secret service person like the shorter one that let her know that Liv was at the hunting grounds that day and why Fitz was really upset. Remember the “blink your eyes if I am right” scene? LOL! He always seem to feel sorry for her anyway. :-)

Some of my favorite characters have killed people who didn’t even deserve it -from shows like Dexter to Breaking Bad to Sons of Anarchy. Verna was responsible for the murder of a young mother and attempted murder on Fitz so no I do not feel it was a villainous move by Fitz. Sometimes the male protagonist is not the perfect prince everyone wants him to be. I loved the character development. Well done Shonda! Now please make Fitz and Olivia END GAME.

It’s time for the show to lighten up a bit. Fitz being a killer is a little devastating so I need some humor. Not knowing when to lighten things up is Shonda’s biggest fault as a writer I’d say. This is why I stopped watching Greys and Private Practice. I shouldn’t need an escape from my escape (TV) every week.

Agreed. A little more humor would help ease the tension. That being said, cyrus and James getting naked made me chuckle and the look on Huck’s face when he gave Abby the cds was priceless! THAT was funny!

No T, no shade … but to quote miss Rhimes “If you want humor, comedy, happy endings that’s what comedies are … this is a drama”.
PS: LOVED last night’s eppy! Bring on the back 9 episodes.
Over a cliff!

Fitz is f*cked. For the rest of his time in office, his presidency will never feel secure. Imagine him lying awake night after night wondering how many people know about the rigged voting machines and how can he shut them up before somebody spills the beans. As for him and Olivia, I think that’s over for good. She’s wounded but she’s strong. If he tries to get her back after the way he kicked her to the curb she will slap him down so hard he will be seeing stars. I think his dad was right about him. He’s fundamentally weak. Let Mellie have him; they don’t deserve anyone better than each other.

I actually think this episode proved Fitz to be stronger than any of us believed. Not that his father was a paragon of strength, but I couldn’t imagine his dad instructing him to leave Verna to ruin everyone’s lives. His father, most likely, would have done the same thing. Just my two cents. Great show… and my productivity on Fridays is becoming negligible… thanks Shonda…

You bring up a great point. Did he speed up Verna’s death for revenge? Or was it to save his presidency? Because if it was the latter, then I don’t see how that slippery slope isn’t addressed. How far does he or any of them go to keep this quiet?

Can I also just say Shonda Rhimes and Linda Lowy’s casting on this show is fantastic. SCOTT FOLEY?!?!? He’d better get ready for the avalanche of twitter followers he’s about to get. I can’t put my finger on it, but if he does become a love interest for OP, he just might be one of the few actors who might be able to sway some “Olitz” fans to his side. There is something about him that I think will work perfectly for this show.

I think that if the old hag had never told Fitz that Olivia was in on it, he would have never killed her. I think he felt he could deal with anything as long as he had Olivia, but finding out that truth cut him to the core and without her he just didn’t care about anything anymore. Especially if he is going to try and make some sort of relationship work between him and his lousy excuse for a wife!

Verna should’ve explain what each person gained from election rigging.Olivia never gained anything from election rigging.Olivia always believed in Fitz and tried to not to agree to the rigging until the last minute. Olivia sold her soul so the man that she love can live his dream .Olivia never used him all she wanted is what’s best for him.Verna, Cy, Mellie and Hollis used him and now he is back in the arms of Mellie his cold and calculating wife who never loved him the way Olivia did.

Perhaps it’s just semantics but Fitz didn’t actively kill Verna; he removed her breathing apparatus and let nature take its course. It was the mention of his father and Olivia’s betrayal the punctured his ideals like a balloon, with the air running out so fast it sent him into a tailspin. Love the unexpected, Shonda; keep it coming!

I find it odd that anyone is actually morally outraged over Fitz and Olivia’s affair. Further, what difference does it make if they’re all “bad guys” to one extent or another? In my experience, most people are, depending on their situations. There really isn’t any black and white in this world, it’s mostly all gray. The higher up the food chain you go, the grayer it gets. Then there are always situation ethics. You have to adapt to whatever you’re facing.
My favorite scene was Huck telling Quinn he’d kill Hollis for her for free but then she could never come back and why. I’m looking forward to getting the full backstories on all the Gladiators. They’ve only scratched the surface with that, so far.
Great storytelling. Can’t wait to see how Fitz gets even with Mellie. That should be GOOD!!

I don’t know if I’m morally outraged. I don’t think there is any real justification for the behavior. Sure, there are shades of grey for many complex situations out there. I just don’t think that explanation flies in justifying selfish acts and behaviors that can hurt people. A mother committing stealing some food or tricking to feed her children, IMO, comes with its shades of grey. Sitting there and allowing the wife of the man your messing around with to apologize to you for his “drunken inappropriateness” does not. Its flat out grimy.

True, but “grimy” happens.
Most people are selfish when you come right down to it. Varying levels, of course, but still selfish. I’m not judging, btw, just observing.
My point was just that I find it odd how some people continue to focus on the affair with a certain level of moral judgement. It makes perfect sense to me. The guy is married to a harpy, he met someone else to whom he feels a connection. Happens all the time. Besides, it’s just a tv show. I think that’s what it really is. People being upset over a fictional affair between fictional people. The moralizing over these types of things never fails to amuse me.

I try not judge anyone either. As you said, we’ve all got a little “bad guy” in us and have done things we are not proud of.

But I can’t fault folks for being passionate about television shows or any kind of fiction. As an artist, that’s what you strive for. With absolutely so much media out there, your fighting for the audiences attention. Your best bet is to find those characters, themes,stories, scenarios that are going to resonate with an audience. You want them to get invested so they will come back next week or buy the next book. Whether they are things that a person may or may not agree with, the hallmark of a great show is to tap into those emotions. Maybe the point of the show is that none of these people are supposed to be likeable.

I just want to add that I think many people’s frustrations isn’t so much moral outrage, but that there feels like a lack of levity from the drama, something I feel plagues Shonda’s writing sometimes. I get life is tough and is filled with crap that never seems to end. But the fact is that no matter how bad it gets, we all find those moments to have a bit of fun and laugh a bit. As someone said, a little bit of heart and humor needs to be thrown in.

I was a big Olitz fan and even had a little crush on Fitz; here was a good natured but flawed guy who realized his great love late in his life and wanted desperately to be with her and loved her with his core. After all that has transpired, I’m not sure so sure of that love. He gave up to easily. In my eyes, he has really responded like a coward. It was too easy for him to run back to Mellie (his lying manipulating wife) instead of working through is issues with Liv. To me, it showed that he IS in this for his own personal gain. His choice was either to chose the love of his life and give up his presidency or to keep his presidency and give up that great love. I guess we now know after 213 what his choice is and I bet that we will see him try to maintain his sexual relationship with Liv and remain president which is what he wanted all along. He was mad at her for most of Season 2 because she refused to talk to him because she knew there was no future for them but he kept pushing her until he got mad and said that they were done. He then asks her to wait on him but for how long?? And all this Amanda Tanner stuff again shows how selfish he has been with Liv. I think at this point, he deserves this bad marriage he has with Mellie and I think Liv deserves to be with someone she can be in a normal relationship with…she can still have all the pain and complicated and devastating love with someone else. It’s impossible for her to have that with a sitting president and especially with someone who has appeared to have gone to the darkside. He was once uncomfortable with his scheming wife, now he has formed a new bond/alliance with her. It’s a damn shame. He had so much potential.

You made some truly astounding points. I agree with most everything you said, but I remember a tweet from Tony Thursday night where he said the reason he couldn’t forgive Olivia at that point was because she broke his heart. Then in Shonda’s interview that same evening she said that when Fitz killed Verna and he found out that he didn’t really win, he felt like all he deserved was Mellie. That he believed that Olivia was the one person who wanted him for himself and he doubts that now. He’s crushed. Devastated.

I truly hope that Olivia and Fitz work thru this and get back to building their relationship. They have chemistry and understand each other very well. They both have flaws, but that should not stand in the way of true love.

Scandal gets more and more exciting every week…..
What a disappointment to see the “love of my life, Fitz” stop C.J. Verna from breathing. He’s my hero, however flawed. But to make that quick decision and cross the line is almost unbearable. I hope Shonda makes that just an imaginary thought in that episode….
If this is left in, however, it would be intriguing to see Fitz go through an emotional love/hate bout for about 2 weeks with Liv because he’s not sure if he can still trust her, especially after what Verna told him about the cover-up.

Would like to see a glamorous concert at the White House such as the one a couple of years ago with Mick Jagger, Diana Krall and others to entertain President Fitz. Olivia shows up with a new beau. A romantic song is played and Olivia gets so emotional that she has to go outside in the hall. Fitz sees her leave….leaves Mellie’s side, goes out in the hall to check on her…and there’s a scrap between Fitz and Liv because of his jealousy of Liv with someone else. Wow! Talk about painful, difficult, devastating, live-changing, extraordinary love.

I like your story line idea. If they could figure out a way to have some kind of event that didn’t involve big stars, that would be great. I don’t imagine the budget would cover their fees. But some way to work out the rest of it would be great!